Secret of the Seven Gems
by RocketDarkness
Summary: *Original Title: Mystery of the Seven Jewels* Chapter 8! The group sets out on their quest of revenge on Knuckles' behalf. Reviews! I crave them!
1. Chapter 1

_Mystery of the Seven Jewels_   
_By RocketDarkness_   
**Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters in this fic, though I own the fic itself. I also own the word "Meh". Use it and pay the fine of many moneys. Please note this may or may not be the actual first chapter, as I'm lazy and want to see what others think of the basic premise before I continue. Reviews are GOOD.**

The small, blue speck flew through the air with exceptional speed, its buzzing engine drowning out much of the three passenger's conversation. On top of the Tornado, Sonic and Knuckles relaxed on the wing as Tails piloted his homemade contraption towards the ever-nearing Floating Island. The warm sunlight, coupled with the cool breeze made the flight very relaxing.   
"Hey, Sonic, if you trust me with these emeralds, then why are you and Tails escorting me? You know I can make it there myself…" Knuckles shouted over to Sonic, who was lying on his side, propping his head up with his left arm. Sonic opened his eyes, and glanced over at Knuckles before responding.   
"Just in case you get tricked again…y'never know, Dr. R might convince you that I'm simply creating a false sense of security…"   
Tails chipped in. "Yeah, like the past two times!" Sonic and Tails suppressed a laugh. Knuckles simply sighed, as he knew they'd never let him forget those events. 'What was I thinking?!'   
Sonic cut into his thoughts. "Plus, would you like to go back with exactly **every single person in the world** thanking you five million times each!? I'll lay low for a while, thank you very much. At the very least, get the emeralds to a safe place so we never have to go through tha—" His rant was interrupted by the Tornado suddenly jolting, and then exploding into millions of pieces. The shockwaves blasted Sonic away from the now-totaled plane, his first thought of the safety of his friends. 'Where were they…?' he wondered, not realizing he was now in a freefall. He screamed, falling all the way down to the Floating Island. The last thing he saw were the eight jewels tumbling down in all directions.   
---   
Sonic opened his eyes, and found himself staring up at the clear sky. He could hear the sounds of nature all around him. He looked around cautiously, trying to figure out what happened. Sonic saw the lush vegetation of the Angel Island Zone around him, and saw that a particularly soft bush was used as his makeshift pillow. He realized with a jolt that the Tornado had been shot down. 'How could I have survived? And where're the others?' He jumped up, and to his surprise, his body was not sore at all. Sonic did a quick once-over quickly. No major injuries, or anything. A miracle? Anyways, there were more important matters to attend to. "TAILS! KNUCKLES ANYONE!?"   
Sonic continued to shout their names out loudly, wandering around the area where he had awoken, in case one of them had brought him here. At that moment, he heard a rustling sound in the bushes. In an instant, he stood behind the offender, without alerting to his own presence. He watched warily as whomever it was step out into the clearing, muttering to herself. He gasped. It was Rouge the bat, the one and only! She inspected the area where Sonic was resting, and then wandered off in the other direction. Questions immediately popped into his head: 'What is she doing here? Does she know where Knuckles and Tails are? I bet she's after the emeralds again…already? Hey, where'd she—' Sonic's train of thought was cut off as he was grabbed roughly from behind, the assailant's arm around his neck, and a touch of cool metal at his temple. The smooth texture of the arm's covering was a distinct contrast to his body's heat. Sonic froze, knowing he was unable to do anything.   
"What do you think I am, a tourist attraction for men!?" Rouge's voice barked in his ear harshly. "I'm not a spy for nothing, you know!" She took the weapon down from his head, and let him squirm out of her hold. He was blushing, obviously not expecting something like that from her. "I saved you, y'know. If it weren't for me, you'd be a blue splat on the ground." She reinforced this by imitating him with her hand, bringing it down and making a little splat noise.   
"Do you know where Tails and Knuckles are?" Sonic asked immediately. Her ears perked up at the mention of Knuckle's name.   
"No, I didn't see them. They're probably fine. Unlike you, they can survive long falls."   
"Well, have you at least seen the Emeralds?" She stared at him, contorting her face into an expression of exasperation.   
"No, I'm on vacation. _Of course I saw them_! In fact, I've found all eight."   
"Eight? But there's only—oh, the Master Emerald!"   
"Yes, the Master Emerald. I was paid to retrieve all eight of them after they "convinced" you to let them go. You're just lucky I didn't turn you in, G.U.N. probably wants you dead."   
Sonic gasped, shocked. "You're working for G.U.N.? Why?"   
"G.U.N. is a part of the government. Normally they don't interact with all the normal government bureaus, but I guess my gem-hunting prowess must have given them a reason to request my services. Naturally, I have no say in the opinion. Government orders. It pays the rent, right?"   
"But…you know that G.U.N. is up to no good! What are you thinking!?" Sonic shouted, clearly worried that G.U.N. now had possession of the emeralds. With a long leash from the government, who knew what they could do…   
Rouge looked away, not responding. "There's…nothing I can do. It's my job."   
Sonic snorted loudly. "Yeah, well my job is to get those emeralds back. So are you gonna help me, or do I have to use force, bat?" Rouge laughed.   
"You think you can fight me? You may be fast, but you're not trained in the art of fighting." She tapped her boot on the ground, mocking him.   
"Oh, that's it!"   



	2. Announcement

Hello. Unfortunately (for you), I'm going to be gone until Friday. Thus, I won't be able to update my story at all until then. And I was so close to finishing chapter 2. Ah well. Hopefully, I'll be able to write up a few more chapters while I'm gone. Just thought you'd like to know, and this also bumps my story up on the list. Whee. 

~RocketDarkness 


	3. Chapter 2

_Mystery of the Seven Jewels_   
_Chapter 2_ **(or 1, if you don't consider that other part a real chapter. Either way, this is the way it's numbered, so deal with it)**   
_By RocketDarkness_   
_A/N: Wow, people actually bothered to review. Thus, I will continue to write. Remember, I don't own any of the characters. What kind of idiot would write a disclaimer-thingy if they owned it? Well, if I owned Sonic and associates, I guess I'd be selling this instead, and making money. I like money. Yep._

_--_   
Sonic cracked his knuckles quickly. He preferred not to hit a female, particularly one that had helped him save the world, but this time he had no choice. He had to force her to help get the emeralds back, and a simple conversation wasn't going to do it. Rouge stood, a few feet away, holding her pistol at her side. She hoped she didn't have to use it, but if necessary she wouldn't hesitate to kill him. Sure, he'd saved the world a few times, but then again, the echidna and fox could easily take his place. "So, hedgehog, you going to leave me alone or am I going to have to teach you a lesson? This is your last chance, as I'm a busy girl. Got places to go, jewels to retrieve. Pay to collect."   
Sonic simply stood still. Suddenly, he disappeared. Lucky for Rouge, she was prepared for this, and flipped around as he came at her from behind. She barely had time to avoid his attack before he came back, ramming her with his shoulder to send her hard into the ground. She skidded along the dirt path, and into the bushes, dazed and dusty but otherwise fine. "Had enough, thief?" He pointed at her dramatically. "Now, take me to the emeralds!"   
Rouge spit on the ground, a small trace of blood evident. "You sound like Knuckles." Sonic walked over to her, and helped her up. "You going to take me or not?" She accepted his help, then as soon as she was back on her feet she pushed him away.   
"So damn chivalrous. Sure, it's nice, but honestly, would you have let up that easily if you were fighting Knuckles, or Eggman?" He thought about it for a second, rubbing his chin. "No, I guess n--!"   
Rouge's response was to kick him in the stomach, sending him into a nearby tree. "Then the fight's not over, blue-boy." With that, she crouched to the ground, and pushed off. She flapped her wings to gain height. "We'll finish this later, hedgehog. I've got more important things to worry about than your little quest."   
Sonic jumped to his feet, a long red mark across his belly from where the steel edge of her boots cut into him. He scowled at her angrily. He dashed to the nearest tree, and began to run on its trunk around and around, gaining speed quickly. Suddenly, he shot into another nearby tree, and rebounded off of it straight up into the air. Rouge's flight was interrupted by Sonic's fist colliding with her jaw as he zoomed past her. She recoiled in pain as she was knocked out of balance, flapping her wings sporadically to maintain her flight. Looking up, she saw Sonic coming down fast with his feet outstretched. She steadied herself, and as he came at her, she grabbed his leg, dangling him headfirst above the ground. "You certainly are persistent, I'll give you that. But you've never actually been trained in combat, have you?"   
Sonic used his momentum to swing up, and grabbed onto her shoulders to keep from falling. He drew back his fist and punched at her, but she ducked. Letting go of his foot, she kicked him in the face with her toe. As he let go, stunned, she brought down the butt of her gun on his head with both of her hands. A sickening crack resounded, and he fell to the ground, unconscious. As he landed, he made a loud thud sound. She saw a lone Ring roll away from him, then disappear into the underbrush. With that, she flew away.   
--   
Sonic awoke to the rough shaking from Tails. The little fox was shaking him harshly, trying to wake him up. "Hey, little buddy. Don't worry, I'm fine."   
Tails gasped. "You're awake!" He exclaimed gleefully, happy to see his best friend returning to consciousness. Sonic smiled at him, noticing that he seemed to have been crying somewhat recently. His fur underneath his eyes was stained slightly by the tears. Sonic laughed halfheartedly. Tails was, in reality, still a child. Hell, at his age Sonic was still afraid of the dark. Tails was never allowed to feel such normal fears. First being teased by every possible friend, then being kidnapped, then eventually joining with Sonic himself on the adventures, Tails never got a chance to be a kid.   
"Yeah, I'm awake. I had a little run-in with...err...someone, and lost." Sonic hoped Tails wouldn't press the issue. He didn't exactly want to admit he had his ass handed to him by Rouge, of all people. He made a mental note to show her more respect in the future.   
"I was worried for a little while. You have a nasty bruise on your forehead!" Tails pointed to it, and Sonic reached up to feel it. He winced as he touched it. This one was going to be around for a while.   
"Is Knuckles around?"   
"No, he went off to find the emeralds. As usual." Sonic got to his feet shakily.   
"We have to find him, G.U.N. is on the island!" With that, he and Tails took off across the island in search of the echidna.   
--   
Sonic scanned the island impatiently, unable to find Knuckles anywhere. Nevertheless, he continued to run, calling out his name. To his right, he heard Knuckles shout back in response. Changing direction on a dime, he followed Knuckles' voice. Bursting into a clearing, Sonic promptly tripped and hit the ground. "Today is not my day."   
"Watch where you're going!" Knuckles sat, rubbing his head in pain. "YOU TRIPPED ON MY HEAD!" Tails hovered overhead, laughing at his two friends as they squabbled.   
"Knux, we have more important things to do on this island! G.U.N. is here, and they've got the emeralds. We need to get them back, imagine how much damage they could do!" Sonic said quickly. Knuckles immediately became much more attentive once the emeralds were involved.   
"But Sonic, I didn't see any heavy machinery anywhere when I was flying around. And you know how good of an eye I have." Tails said quietly.   
"Knuckles, any idea where they are?"   
"No idea...unless..."   
"Unless what?" the clueless duo asked, impatient.   
"Unless they found the Hidden Palace...they must be underground!"   
"How? It took Tails and I a long while to navigate through all those tunnels!"   
"Yeah, but there are paths that lead directly to the Palace."   
"Oh." Sonic paused, unsure of what to say. "Then let's go do our thing!"   
"The passage is actually not too far away. Now let's go. And remember, if you tell anyone, I will personally kill you and anyone that finds out." Sonic simply laughed nervously.   
--   
Up. Down. Left. Left. Left more. Down. Up. To Sonic, it seemed like the dark tunnel would never end. He wasn't sure if he was even still in the tunnel. Perhaps he had been spit out into a pitch black room and knocked out. He was only dreaming of still being in the tunnel. Maybe. The black abyss continued to rush at him, but never pass. Then, finally, it did. Bright light flooded his eyes, forcing him to throw his hands up in protest. Unfortunately, his hands prevented him from realizing how close the floor was. Sonic hit the ground facefirst with a loud thud. A few seconds later, the sound of another thud. Sonic waited to hear a third thud, but instead he heard air running through dreadlocks. He pushed himself up, pain radiating through his injuries from the battle with Rouge. Damn bat. He stood up, and turned to Knuckles. "Why didn't you WARN US!?"   
Knuckles snickered. "Consider it revenge for..." He stopped as his gaze traveled downwards. From the floating platform they were stationed upon, he stared in fear as he realized that the palace was completely transformed. The last time Sonic had been there, the walls were covered with blue crystal. Light shone down from some unknown source, bathing everything in a murky-blue hue. Now, the walls were covered with cold, hard steel. Unnatural light reflected from the ceiling down. G.U.N.'s various robots were everywhere. All that was left untouched was the shrine of the emeralds. Except now, several tubes glowing different colors ran from the pedestals, siphoning off the energy. The Chaos Emeralds sat in their respective pedestals, though they were mere gnats in the presence of the Master Emerald. Not to mention that the energy that should be infusing them to become Super Emeralds was being "borrowed". And in the middle of it all stood Rouge the bat. Of course.   
--   
_Yay, chapter two done! Hope you enjoy it, and keep reviewing. It's always good to know you're making people happy with what you do. And yes, I respect Rouge very much, as you can now see. Comments and criticism welcome, my email is rocketdarkness@yahoo.com if necessary. Thanks!_   
  
  



	4. Chapter 3

**_Mystery of the Seven Gems_**   
_Chapter 3_   
**_By RocketDarkness_**   
_A/N: Wow, I got my first criticism, if you can call it that. I guess that means people actually care about the story enough to yell and scream incoherently at me. I feel so loved. Anyways, if a little thing like Rouge beating Sonic in an aerial fight (despite the fact Sonic easily beat her on the ground, plus he can't fly naturally) bothers you, then you won't like what will happen later on. If you wish to contact me, email is rocketdarkness@yahoo.com (still). Oh yeah, and the names for all the G.U.N. robots from this point forward are from the Green Hill Zone, at http://www.emulationzone.org/fanfare/ghz ._

********************   
Sonic recoiled, pulling back from the horrifying sight before him and snapping out of his state of shock. He looked over to Knuckles, prepared to offer his condolences. However, his glance revealed that Knuckles was standing on the railing of the floating platform. And then he was gone from sight. "Damn." It was suicide for him to go alone. "Hey Tails, it's time to save the world!" With that, Sonic propelled himself off the platform, Tails following closely behind, prepared to slow Sonic's descent.   
Knuckles, meanwhile, was gliding downwards in a blind fury. While he may have a slight crush on Rouge, it didn't mean he'd let her destroy his home. All he could think about was knocking the snot out of her, and quickly. Nothing else mattered. He cocked his fist, ready to strike her in the back of the head as soon as he could. The only warning sound he gave was the swift rushing of air through his dreadlocks. He urged himself to drop faster. He concentrated on the back of her head as it grew closer, and closer, and then, at the last second, she turned around. Knuckles could hear her gasp in surprise, and she began to pull her pistol up to shoot. Too late. Knuckles swung, and she was lucky enough to step back far enough to avoid being hit full-on by his sharp knuckles. Nevertheless, she still received the brunt of the attack, and was knocked to the ground roughly as Knuckles collided with her, knocking her hard to the ground. The pistol discharged, causing the young kitsune to yelp in pain as the bullet found an alternate target. His tails stopped twirling, causing both him and Sonic to fall to the cool steel floor.   
"Man, today is not my day..." Sonic decided woozily, then realized his best buddy was injured. Tails was crying weakly, holding one of his bushy, and now somewhat bloody, tails in his hand. Sonic crouched at his side. "You okay? Let me look at that..." He took the injured tail in his hands, careful not to get blood on his white gloves. He parted the fur, and looked in. To his immense relief, the bullet had just barely grazed the tip of the tail. Tails looked on, just as relieved as Sonic.   
Knuckles, meanwhile, had securely pinned Rouge's shoulders to the floor and was now glaring icely into her eyes. Rouge, for once, shrunk back, genuinely scared. "You...you did this! Change...it...back...right...now!" Knuckles pronounced the words slowly, and with great force.   
"Knuckles...I...I can't. I'm sorry about this, I really am. But you have to understand--"   
"No! _YOU_ understand that if you can't fix this, I'll fix _you_!"   
"I didn't want this to happen, but I didn't have any say in the matter. It's all G.U.N.!"   
"Tell those...those things...to fix it!"   
"They aren't under my control...there's nothing I can do. I didn't want to have any part in this..." Rouge avoided Knuckles gaze as best she could as she spoke softly. Her eyelids dropped, realizing she probably wasn't going to convince the echidna otherwise. She watched him draw back his fist, and then closed her eyes as she imagined that fist being driven into her face, the sharp spikes puncturing her soft skin...and the force...she shuddered at the thought. Not to mention that--her thoughts were interrupted rudely by the sound of the alarm blaring. Knuckles looked up, momentarily confused. This was all the delay she needed. Quickly,she pushed off hard from the ground. Her legs, temporarily being pinned down by Knuckles, provided enough energy to soundly fling him off of her. Following through, she landed deftly back on her feet. She scooped up her discarded weapon.   
The echinda, meanwhile, found himself in a tangle of wires that broke his fall. Throwing himself into a spin, he made short work of the flimsy siphons. "Sonic! We've got company!"   
"Tails, ready to fight?" Sonic shouted unnecessarily loud, as was custom.   
"Yeah, but what about Rouge?"   
"Knux can take care of it, right?"   
"Hey!" Rouge interrupted. "What makes you think _he _can succeed where you failed?" Knuckles and Tails looked to Sonic questioningly. At that moment, Hunter robots of all types flooded into the Emerald Chamber.   
"Err..." Sonic grinned widely, embarassed. "Not now, busy!" He jumped into a Sonic Spin and began to tear through the robots with great zeal. Tails, not one to be left behind, quickly followed suit. The robots opened fire. Unfortunately, the two blurs continued to trash their ranks, not even noticing the potentially dangerous laser barrage.Their parade of robotic destruction was put to a stop when a familiar sound was heard. Sonic immediately grabbed Tails' hand and dashed away, just as the payload of a Hornet-9 exploded where they had been milliseconds earlier. More Hunter-9s flooded in.   
"Tails! On my command, spin your tails as fast as possible!" Instantly, Sonic jumped onto a nearby wall, his superheated footwear causing him to slide slowly down the wall, holding Tails up with his hands. He eyed the 'bots tensely, waiting. Ching. The bombs were detached. Here they come...with an explosive burst of speed, he pushed off the wall, right past the bombs as he shouted. "Now!" Sonic's speed, combined with the rapid twirling of the tails, created a temporary vortex. The bombs were sucked behind them at high speed. He landed right in front of a few Hunters. They leveled their guns downwards, to his forehead. "Shame there's no time to pull the trigger!" The resulting explosion destroyed everything near. Sonic, naturally, was nowhere to be seen.   
--   
While Sonic and Tails engaged the robots, Knuckles had more important matters to attend to. "All right, bat, what's going on here? And why is that machine hooked up to the Master Emerald?"   
"It's a long story...I'll tell you later. What matters now is that the machine is analyzing your green rock, and is _trying_ to figure out how to harness its power. Is that good enough for you?"   
"Harness its power? They think they can harness the power of the Master Emerald?" Knuckles chuckled, despite the grim situation. "Even a small sample of its power could..." Rouge gasped.   
"G.U.N. doesn't know that the emerald is limitless! Help me stop the machine!" Rouge hastily grabbed Knuckles' hand and flew them to the top pedestal of the Emerald Shrine, where the Master Emerald lay as its power was being slowly collected. Knuckles stood, staring. "Well, you gonna do something?"   
"They're _your_ machines."   
"Well, I don't know what to do!" She thought quickly, then shouted. "TAILS!" Immediately, both Sonic and Tails appeared next to them. "Wow, you guys are faster than I give you credit for."   
"You called?" Sonic asked quizzically.   
"Yes."   
"We didn't hear anything." Sonic said quickly, then jumped down from the platform, ready to take out any straggling 'bots.   
"Yeah, we came because we need to get out of here, quick! The entire Palace is swarming with 'bots of all shapes and sizes!" Tails chipped in.   
"Tails, think you can do something about this mess?" Rouge asked, pointing to the wires. Tails looked down.   
"Do what?"   
"Y'know...make it not work." She said, for lack of words. Tails began his tails, then flew along, following the cables to a small machine, full of activity. Gauges and meters of all varieties were continually monitoring the emerald's output. Tails quickly scanned the machine, obviously understanding what it all meant. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully.   
Finally, he remarked, "It seems to have an overflow of energy. If it doesn't have some sort of outlet, it could very well explode. However, I'm not sure what this does." He pointed to a small apparatus sticking out of the backside of the machine. "I'd think it's some kind of outlet, but I don't know how it operates. It must be automated, so--uh oh, guys, it's reached critical condition!"   
Rouge turned to Knuckles, irritated. "Can't you do anything?"   
"Unfortunately, there _isn't _a Master Emerald for the Master Emerald!" Knuckles retorted.   
Sonic zoomed into appearance. "Not a good time to argue!" As if to accentuate the point, laser fire began to assail them. "Knuckles, come with me! Rouge and Tails, figure out how we're gonna survive this!" Into the robot swarm they went, yet every time a robot was destroyed, a new one seemed to appear somewhere else. Tails, engrossed in this mysterious machine, began to push buttons, pull levers, and twist knobs.   
"Hmm, maybe if I do this...no, I should probably release the--wait, I need to deactivate this first!" Rouge watched, gun held at her side. Smart kid. "Grr...I need to...wait! NO! DON'T RELEASE THE ENERGY! NOT WITHOUT AN INLET, THAT'LL--Rouge, get down!" Tails knocked Rouge to the ground as a beam of pure green energy pierced the air, colliding with a G.U.N. Shield Hunter. The arcane green energy coursed through the robot, causing it to twitch sporadically, then explode in a green flash.   
--   
Sonic coughed, heavy smoke obscuring his vision. "Well, one less robot." The explosion had come from out of the blue. He waved his hands in irritation, trying to clear the thick gray smoke clouding his eyes and causing them to water. Dimly, he saw a green glow up ahead. Sonic ran towards it, trying to get clear of the smoke. In mid stride, he threw himself into a spin when he realized the green light emanated from the blasted 'bot. His razor-sharp spines hit the 'bot full force, yet he passed through without even phasing the 'bot. However, his entire body felt like it was on fire. "How am I supposed to destroy it if I can't even touch it!?" The crystalline robot turned towards him, and cocked its head. Sonic was shocked. It responded as if it understood...could the Master Emerald's power go so far as to enable sentience? The robot pointed its weaponless arm at the hedgehog, and he gulped. In an instant, the entire arm morphed into a neon green sword. In an instant, Sonic disappeared, not wanting to fight a being made out of pure energy. Not without a plan...   
The green entity watched, as its solid, mindless brethren walked and flew by. It realized that it had once been like that. Taking aim with his now-distorted laser, it opened fire on an overhead Bomb Beetle. The green energy again coursed through the metal, and then the explosion. Success. The beetle, now sentient, began to drop its emerald payloads onto the ground in waves transforming the robots into their glowing counterparts.   
"The emeralds must have fried their circuits or something! They're attacking each other." Knuckles commented.   
"I think they're doing it on purpose. G.U.N.bots are programmed explicitly to not shoot each other. The emerald must have something to--" Rouge was cut off as Sonic came to a jarring stop.   
"They're sentient!"   
--   
Finally, they were compleat. Each robot was now stripped of their clunky metal bodies, and had become comprised of pure energy. They realized that there was strength in numbers. Their outlines became distorted among the smoke, fading in and out of reality as they began to merge together. Their energy scalded the very air as the joined together, fusing into a mass of pure chaos. Yet one being did not merge. It stood to the side, arms folded across its chest. The figure pulsed yellow, his red eyes piercing the inky shroud of smoke. It was then the Chaos learned the meaning of fear.   
*****************   
_A/N: Yay, it's done! I had originally intended for this and the next chapter to be one, but I realized it was getting too long and I didn't want to make my small number of readers wait too long. If you have any questions, just post them as part of your review. Also, I'd appreciate if you'd determine how accurately I'm capturing their attitudes. I don't want to drift too far out of character. Thanks, and enjoy! **~RocketDarkness**_


	5. Chapter 4

**_Mystery of the Seven Gems_**   
_Chapter 4_   
**_By RocketDarkness_**   
_A/N: Wow, I think last chapter dragged on too long. Ah well._   
_And '______' is thought._

*********************   
Sonic eyed the Chaos warily. Despite the smoke, he could see clearly. Despite the heat, he could feel nothing. He was Super Sonic. In an instant, he blasted through the center of the Chaos, creating a gaping hole where his yellow energy was able to eat away at the Chaos. He darted towards it again. This time, the Chaos opened a passage for him, causing him miss the entity entirely. He tried again and again, but the Chaos was able to simply open more passageways, always shifting form. It learned. In the back of his mind, he wished he knew how to use the power of the emeralds in such a way. All he had ever been able to do was to transform into a more powerful state, but that required rings. Perhaps...perhaps the rings were the key to unlocking the full potential! Sonic thought back a few days, when he realized that he could use the emeralds to concentrate the wind into a specialized attack, and even stop time itself. Wait...that was it! Concentrating, he shouted out those two words: CHAOS CONTROL!   
In an instant, everything ground to a halt. The Chaos held perfectly still. Energy itself was frozen. Not one to waste this opportunity, he blasted in and out of the Chaos, rapidly destroying much of its energy. He watched as his energy began to decay the green power. Then, his energy stopped too. The being of Chaos began to glow brighter, and a blast of hot emerald-green light engulfed the Hidden Palace. Sonic fell to the ground. The Chaos stopped the power of the emeralds. "Aw man, I'm back to blue!" After his quick observation, he had to peel out before the Chaos attempted to engulf him. While he couldn't afford to stop, the blue blur shouted out to Knuckles. "Knux, I have an idea! Use the Master Emerald to recharge the Chaos Emeralds! And hurry!" Sonic took a flying leap, and landed next to one of the Chaos Emeralds, picked it out of its shrine, and dashed away. The ruby red emerald lay dormant, no longer emitting its soft glow. Knuckles shouted at him, but he was already out of distance.   
"Hmm...I've got a better idea!" Sonic hurled the emerald at the Chaos with as much strength as he could muster. As it traveled through, the infinite amounts of energy began to permeate into the Emerald. It began to grow larger, and glow brighter. Sonic, waiting on the other end, caught the sizeably larger jewel. Putting it down, he dashed over, and grabbed the remaining six. The Chaos, however, would not allow itself to be used as some battery recharger, and granted the emeralds safe passage through, to clatter down, still useless, on the other side. "What am I supposed to do with _one _Super Emerald?" he said, annoyed that despite the fact he could finally have access to the Super Emeralds, he couldn't transform into Hyper form. He stared at its transparent-red surface as he casually avoided the Chaos's every move. Through it, everything appeared deep red, the color of heat and anger. In fact...by simply looking at it, he realized the very essence of the gem felt different from the light-blue emerald he had been using during the times he used his self-titled Sonic Wind.   
"Well...might as well give it a shot," he said dubiously, feeling as if he was really scraping the bottom of the barrel in terms of ideas this time. 'Hmm...what should I say...it's red, like fire...perhaps something lame? Sonic Fire? Nah...erm...Flaming Hedgehog. Hah! Sure, why not?' He held the emerald up dramatically, and shouted. "Flaming Hedgehogs!"   
--   
"Did he just shout out 'Flaming Hedgehog'?" Rouge asked incredulously to Knuckles. He shrugged.   
--   
From within, Sonic felt several of his rings disappearing as a flaming incarnation of him appeared from the jewel. It faded away, useless. Sonic growled, and then ran full speed at the Chaos, again shouting "Flaming Hedgehog!"   
--   
Knuckles nodded, scratching his head curiously. "Yep, he said 'Flaming Hedgehog'." Tails heard none of this, still busying himself with the machine attached to the emerald.   
--   
Moving at full speed, and willing all of his Rings into it, the flaming projection of himself shot out in a blaze of fire. The Chaos, ready to absorb the defenseless blue animal, was caught off-guard as a giant flaming creature shot out from the small jewel, burning through the Chaos. This created a gap for Sonic to finish running through to reach the rest of his friends, not willing to continue fighting without any of his Rings. His fiery creation didn't simply create a gap, the burning energy ate through the Chaos as if it were firewood. Slowly but surely, the Chaos was destroyed. Sonic sat, exhausted, on top of the Super Emerald that he placed back into its shrine. His feelings of fatigue did not slow down his mouth, however.   
Sonic rambled on imcomprehensibly about the battle, looking as though he was about to drop dead from fatigue. The island was liberated. G.U.N. was gone. Rouge, however, had two words that burst Sonic's bubble: "Not quite..."   
He leapt to his feet, standing on the Super Emerald still. "There's MORE of them?"   
"Don't worry, it shouldn't be a problem. Just a few technicians and maybe guards. I'm sure any one of us could take care of them singlehandedly," she said, not wanting to spoil Sonic's victory.   
"Oh, ok. Hey buddy, you still tinkering with that machine?" Sonic said lightheartedly, walking over to the machine and resting his elbow on it. "C'mon, what's the worst it could do?"   
"Explode, killing all of us," Tails replied matter-of-factly, not missing a beat.   
Sonic gulped. "Well, then I'm really glad you're still here."   
"Sonic, I don't think there's very much I can do about it though. The siphons are still gathering energy at a tremendous rate, and to cut through them would probably be disasterous. But if we don't do anything, the reactor _will _go critical!" Knuckles and Rouge came over, alarmed. Tails continued to pull levers and push buttons, now at a much faster rate.   
Rouge watched the fox work, admiring how technologically adept he was. With her acute sense of hearing, she barely made out the sound of thudding footsteps on the metal floor in time. Whirling around, she saw things were much worse off than she had made them out to be. Those "few technicians" had apparently called on G.U.N. to send an entire batallion of their finest combat-trained humans (_A/N: Like the ones that arrested Sonic after his battle with the Bigfoot Mech_). Jumping into the air, Rouge opened fire, managing to strike a few of the troops that decided to foolishly let their guard down. As they began to level their guns at her, she flapped her wings in a burst of energy, boosting herself up to the highest reaches of the Hidden Palace. She could only hope Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles would take the window of opportunity she created to get themselves off the island.   
Then came the gunfire. A hail of bullets came flying at her, passing in all directions. She winced as one grazed her left shoulder, the bloodstained bullet traveling onwards. She knew if her wings were hit, she was done for. Folding her wings, she dove back down towards the mass of faceless humans. As if some divine entity were smiling down on her, Sonic and Knuckles chose that moment to intervene. Their speed alone drew their attention, but the real distraction began when Sonic barreled into the crowd at high speed, sending a lone man flying across the room and crashing into the wall, dying on impact. Knuckles, after entering the mob, uncurled, and unleashed a flurry of punches, knocking out and wounding anything that got in his way. Picking a suitable landing spot, Rouge entered the fray feet first, wings extended to slow her fall. Touching down, she immediately went into a rising kick, sending one man crashing down next to Tails, who was now frantically activating, deactivating, switching, and adjusting the machine, in some odd sort of grace that only the brink of death could create. No time to worry though. For now, they would have to rely on Tails' technical prowess to save them all.   
--   
Tails' eyes clouded with tears, as he pounded his gloved paws on the Emerald Siphon angrily. He had tried everything, yet it all came out the same. There was no way to stop the inevitable. Only one option: escape. Now. Sending his twin tails into a spinning blur, he took to the air. Above the battlefield, he hesitated long enough to shout out a single word. "BOMB!"   
Tails' outburst caught everyone's attention. Friend and foe alike paused to contemplate the meaning of the word. Sonic, however, got the point across: "RUN!" Instantly the fight stopped, and a stampede of shoes ran back the way they came. In seconds, the room was devoid of life.   
Seconds later, a red blur tore across the room towards the Emerald Shrine, followed by a blue and orange streak. Knuckles tore at the siphons, trying desperately to dislodge the Master Emerald from its own shrine. "Sonic! Help me! I need to protect the Master Emerald!"   
"Knuckles, we have to get out of here now! There's no time!" Tails shouted, angry with his echidna friend at his willingness to throw away his life for a rock. Knuckles ignored him, completely focused on his rescue attempt. Sonic grabbed him by the shoulder roughly, trying to pull him away. At his touch, Knuckles spun around and swung his fist, forcing Sonic to step back before Knuckles could release another punch. Sonic looked to Tails, nodding, and then they both grabbed one of his arms, restraining him.   
"Let me GO!" Knuckles struggled with all his might, twisting and turning as Sonic and Tails began to drag him back towards the entrance. "I can't leave the Master Emerald!" With all his struggling, Sonic and Tails were barely able to hold onto him.   
"You knock him out, Tails."   
"No! You do it!"   
"No, you!"   
"You!"   
Their arguing was put to a stop by Rouge, as she deftly clotted the incoherent echidna over the head with her boot. "Um...thanks, Rouge, but what are you still doing here?"   
"I'm a treasure-hunter first and foremost. Remember that," she said, her fang glinting in the light. After contemplating her message for a few brief seconds, Sonic and Tails took off after her, towards the surface.   
--   
By the time they reached the topside of the island, the entire planet seemed ready to fall apart. Uprooted trees covered any semblance of a path. The tremors were so bad that Sonic was forced to the ground while still trying to carry Knuckles' unconscious body. "Tails! Follow Rouge, and airlift Knuckles out of here!"   
"Sonic, what about you?"   
"You can't carry two people at once! Just go! As soon as you get there, take off! I'll be fine!" Tails took hold of under Knuckles' arms, and began to fly after Rouge, who had a minor benefit with actual wings. Sonic began to follow on the ground, being extra careful not to trip on any of the fallen debris. He picked up speed, nearly catching up to his airborne company, when a glint of ocean-blue light caught his eye. Deep down inside, _something, _for the first time, told him to _stop. _Grinding his feet into the ground, Sonic came to a stop. Knowing he didn't have much time to be dabbling around the island, he quickly got down on his knees and searched the underbrush with his gloved hands.   
"Ow!" Sonic retracted his right hand quickly. Examining the wound, he realized he had jabbed his finger onto a particularly large and pointy thorn. He winced, looking down into the small pool of blood. "Aha!" He stuck his uninjured hand inside the bush and plucked out the dark-blue Chaos Emerald triumphantly. At that moment, another massive tremor broke loose, throwing Sonic into the ground face-first. What the Emerald was doing there, he didn't know. But he was glad that he had it. As he looked back towards the path he came, his mouth opened in silent horror as a beam of searing green light broke through the surface, scarring the very sky with its intensity.   
"Not again...CHAOS CONTROL!" Sonic looked around, annoyed. "Man, how many times is Shadow gonna end up saving my ass in the future?" And then he was gone.   
************   
_A/N: Slow chapter...maybe it has to do with the amount of reviews I get. Actually, I just feel less motivated with less reviews. Not saying more reviews are going to get me to finish any faster, but they will help me from growing disinterested in writing each chapter. Whatever. And here's a RANDOM FACT! The story was based off a Sonic RPG (as in game, not actual Roleplaying) I thought up one day while bored in school. Again, let me know how the characters seem to be doing in terms of staying in-character. And sorry about the fact this chapter sort of sucks._


	6. Chapter 5

**_Mystery of the Seven Jewels_**   
_By RocketDarkness_   
**_Chapter 5_**   
_A/N: Yay, we're finally off the Floating Island! Now...ONWARDS, TOWARDS PLOTLINE!_

***************   
That hedgehog never ceased to amaze her with his abilities. One minute, he was struggling to keep his balance among the tremors, and the next, he tears across half the island in less than a second. At least, that's what she thought when Sonic simply appeared in the back of her personal little aircraft as they prepared to take off from the island, landing on top of Tails and the still-unconscious Knuckles, clutching some small object in his left hand. As he stood up, grinning widely, Rouge realized what he was holding in his hand.   
"Thank the Goddess for the Chaos Emeralds!" he said exuberantly, holding the jewel up for everyone to gaze upon.   
"How did you get that Chaos Emerald, Sonic? I thought they were left in the Hidden Palace when we had to evacuate," Tails asked, curious as always.   
Sonic blinked, a clueless expression on his face as the question ran through his mind. "I don't know. I saw light reflect off of something under a bush, and I felt drawn towards it. Though I guess you you could say it's in my blood."   
Rouge decided not to ask when she realized that she wasn't keeping her mind on taking off. Returning her view to the window, she discovered she only had a few precious feet of runway--if you could call a dusty road that-- left. Yanking hard up on the controls, She managed to get the plane off the ground in time, albeit roughly. Her three passengers were knocked to the floor in a heap of blue, red, and orange body parts. And that was when it all changed to green. The engines on her jet froze. 'Chaos Control?'   
That option was quickly dropped as she realized, by looking out the window, that the plane was now moving _backwards, _as if some sort of mystical force was pulling them back. The island pulsed dark green, energy radiating throughout the cragged underside of the tropical paradise. For a glorious second, everything ceased to work. And then, without warning, the Floating Island exploded in a blindingly neon green flash. The sheer force of the explosion was deafening, shockwaves sending Rouge into a sightless, soundless tailspin.   
--   
Rouge screamed in terror as she felt her stomach being twisted into a knot. At least, she thought she screamed. There was no way to be sure. It dawned on her that she was still gripping the controls to the now out-of-control plane. Instinctively, she jerked up on the controls, regretting her decision as she banged her head violently upon the ceiling of the makeshift cockpit. Wincing, she pushed the other direction. It was then she realized that the plane was upside down. Finally catching her bearings as best she could without sight or sound, she quickly righted the stray plane. The dull ringing in her ears subsided. While her vision was still whited out, she had enough guile and foresight to have a handy little gadget installed on the vehicle. With a flick of a switch, high-pitched sound waves were projected from the plane. While it wasn't true sight, Rouge was more than able to navigate now. With a sigh of relief, she continued back to the mainland.   
--   
As the jet touched down on a small section of seemingly solid land on the coastline, Rouge let out the breath she was holding ever since she got on the plane. She slumped in her seat, content to finally be back on the ground. She unclipped her safety harness, and slid down the chair until only her head remained on the seat. She stared at the ceiling, glad her vision was finally returning. A blue blob eventually appeared in her field of vision. It spoke to her. "Hey Rouge, you ok? Your pupils look very...washed out."   
"Sonic? Is that you? How can you see already?" She reached up in the air and grabbed his face to make sure it was him, and not some disturbing vision problem. Or hallucination. The blur grew hands, and removed her hands from the blob's face.   
"Yes, it's me. And what do you mean how can I see already?" Rouge realized that her weaker eyesight would be much less accustomed to such bright light as opposed to a hedgehog or fox.   
"Sorry, I'm just temporarily blind. Nothing to worry about," she said, half sarcastically.   
"You want to get out? We already got Knuckles outside, and you haven't moved since you undid your harness about a..." Sonic glanced down at one of his arms. "About half an hour ago."   
'I had been out of it that long?' Rouge thought, raising an eyebrow involuntarily. She squirmed her way out from under the dashboard awkwardly and back onto her chair, then stood up. Stepping over her seat, she held onto Sonic's shoulder as he walked through the very small cargo hold, and out onto the beach. The heat from the sun was a direct contrast to the air-cooled airplane interior, and it caused her to yawn, then stretch. Squinting, she surveyed their surroundings as she walked slowly down the metal stairs. The beach seemed deserted, except for them. However, despite the calm, almost nonexistent winds, the waves pounded against the shore harshly, a stark contrast to the peacefulness of the rest of the area. Palm trees swayed gently in the breeze. Tails had propped Knuckles up against one such tree. He sat cross-legged, leaning against another nearby plant. Upon seeing Sonic, he waved him and Rouge over.   
"Hey, Knuckles is coming to, Sonic," Tails said in a slightly hushed voice. Knuckles began to stir, mumbling incoherently. Sonic knelt by his side, and began to shake him gently to wake him up. After a few seconds, he shot up, breathing quickly from something. He glanced around wildly, as if looking for something.   
"Where's the Master Emerald? What happened? Where are we?" Rouge glanced at Sonic, biting her lip. Sonic glanced to Tails. Tails shook his head, not wanting to be the bearer of bad news. Rouge sighed in exasperation. If they weren't willing to say it, she would.   
"Knuckles...we had to abandon the island because...well, you see..." Damn. This was harder than she thought. "...the island exploded!" she finally burst out. Knuckles sat, staring at her and blinking slowly. What he did next shocked everyone. He put his face into his hands and began to cry quietly. This burst of emotion was a revelation. None of them had ever realized exactly how much his duty to his ancestors truly meant to him. Sure, they all knew it was important in one way or another, but they never imagined he'd break down like _this. _Rouge hesitantly reached for his heaving shoulder, and squeezed it gently, hoping to comfort him in some way. Her touch, however, jolted him back to the present. He turned his head to stare at her face, eyes full of hate. His brow furrowed, then in a burst of rage he jumped to his feet and swung blindly at the bat. She stepped aside, shocked.   
"Knuckles, calm down! There's nothing you could..." She ducked a fist, then continued. "...do!"   
"It's all your fault!" Knuckles shouted, continuing his blind attack. "You could have done something!" Rouge backed away quickly, concentrating on calming her enraged friend down. After one particularly sluggish left hook, Rouge tried to grab his arm to restrain him, only to realize her mistake as his right fist caught her square in the jaw. Now on the ground, she touched at her injured jaw lightly. Even the slightest touch caused her to wince in agony. She was distracted from her pain by the dark shadow of the echidna standing over her. His eyes looked her over, still narrowed to a slit.   
Sonic spoke up. "Knuckles, there was nothing anyone could do. Not Rouge, not Tails, not you, not I." Knuckles held his piercing gaze. And then, as rapidly as he turned on Rouge, Knuckles was bearing down on Sonic through the air. Sonic, however, was prepared, and ducked at the last second, throwing his hand up to grab Knuckles' right leg and bring him crashing down on the sandy beach with a thud. Knuckles reacted by entering a spin, causing Sonic to be flung into the air. Sonic, however, was used to being in the air and landed on his feet deftly.   
"Sure, you can save the world, but you can't save my Emerald. Is that how it works? Eh, Sonic?" Knuckles shouted harshly. With that, he turned around to where Tails was still standing by the tree and lashed out with his foot, catching the unprepared fox in the gut. Tails collapsed, coughing and struggling to pull in air. "And you! You couldn't do anything to stop the machine, either! It's your fault!" Knuckles began to shout at him, but suddenly found his arms locked by Sonic.   
"Calm down, Knux! What's your problem? You can't just hit Tails like that! I swear, if I didn't know you better you'd be dead already..."Sonic held Knuckles tightly as he kicked and squirmed, trying to get out of Sonic's grip. Finally, after several minutes, he calmed down, breathing heavily. Sonic let him go cautiously, leaning him up against another palm tree. He promptly smacked Knuckles on the back of the head. "That's for attacking my friend!"   
Knuckles stood up, wiping his eyes clear of any remaining tears. "I have to go. I can't stay here with you, not without this dishonor hanging above my head..." He turned, and began to walk off, out of the clearing.   
"Knuckles, wait!" He turned around. Rouge handed Sonic a small sack, then ran after him, slowing as she came closer. "I know you want to get back at G.U.N., but you don't know where to start. Let me help you. I want to get them back for using me just as much as you do." She grinned at him, and for the first time since they landed on the Floating Island, Knuckles smiled back.   
----   
"So, now what, Tails? Any ideas?"   
"We should help, but I don't think there's much we can do right now. Come with me back to the Mystic Ruins. I've got some serious stuff to show you."   
***************   
_A/N: Sorry it took so long! School is starting up, so I've got my work cut out for me. Just bear with me, and remember, I like reviews! And email! And anything! AIM is RocketDarkness, email is rocketdarkness@yahoo.com . See ya!___

_POINTLESS FACT! I accidentally called a few of the chapters "Mystery of the Seven Gems", as opposed to "Jewels." Surprised no-one's noticed it, but oh well._


	7. Chapter 6

**_Secrets of the Seven Gems_**   
_By RocketDarkness_   
**_Chapter 6_**   
_A/N: Wow, summer's been over. So much work to do in school...ah well, can't let the story simply die off now, can I?_

*************   
'Well, at least he smiled once...' Rouge thought as she followed Knuckles through the jungle, jogging slightly to keep up with him. After that, however, Knuckles returned to his state of brooding. That stupid brown sack was banging on the side of her leg, annoying her. She looked down. "Hey, Knuckles, come here for a sec. I got something to show you." She hoped this would cheer him up at least a little bit.   
--   
"Sonic, what's in that bag that Rouge gave to you?" Tails asked, as they boarded the empty train heading towards the Mystic Ruins.   
"Good question. Let's find a seat, then we'll open the bag." Sonic surveyed the interior of the train, looking for the perfect spot to relax a bit. He decided on one particularly long seat. He dropped down on it, stretching and yawning. Tails took a seat on the opposite side of the walkway, and swung his legs lazily. Sonic, propping himself up on one elbow, took out the sack and undid the loosely tied knot of string. Turning the sack upside down and shaking it, he was not prepared for what landed in his hand.   
"Chaos Emeralds!? How!?" Sonic could not believe it, but there they were. The blue and teal Emeralds glittered in his hands, glowing faintly.   
--   
"The Chaos Emeralds!?" Knuckles shouted, shocked at the announcement from Rouge.   
"What, you think I went back down to the chamber to _save _you? I went back for the Emeralds, you should know that."   
"Is the...Master Emerald....in there?" Knuckles asked hesitantly, fearing the answer. She shook her head no, shrugging apologetically. "Give them to me."   
Rouge handed the sack over to Knuckles, and watched as he emptied the contents into his palm. "Here's the purple one, the orange one, and hey...it's the red Super Emerald!" He weighed it in his hand while he eyed it. "Where are the other four?"   
"I gave Sonic the two blue jewels."   
"And the last two?"   
"With the Master Emerald. In other words, at the bottom of the ocean."   
"Great. We can't even pool the emeralds to become Super."   
"Sonic didn't seem to have much of a problem taking advantage of a single Super Emerald."   
"That reminds me. How _did _he do that?" He tossed her the purple emerald. "Keep it." He then quickly added to his command. "For now, at least. You may need it in a tight spot. Assuming either you or I can figure out how to get them to work."   
Rouge snapped her fingers sarcastically. "And I was hoping it would fetch a decent price on the market." She eyed the jewels as Knuckles did, then knelt down and pulled off her left boot.   
"You're going to keep it in your boot?"   
She looked up. "Yes."   
"Won't that be a bit uncomfortable?"   
She responded by deftly flipping open a small compartment hatch on the back of the heel. She stuck the purple gem into a holder, and snapped the heel closed. Finally, she responded to his question. "No."   
Knuckles raised an eyebrow, with a questioning look upon his face. "What did you expect? I'm a spy."   
--   
Sonic followed Tails silently as he dashed up the grassy hill towards his workshop. He had to quicken his pace as they neared the door, Tails seeming ready to burst with excitement. He punched in a few numbers into a keypad he installed next to the door, and the door locks snapped open mechanically. Pulling the door open, Tails dashed inside, and down a flight of stairs, spinning tails sending all the papers he had lying around into the air. Echoing up the stairwell came Tails' voice. "I thought you were the fastest thing alive!"   
The next few seconds Tails spend picking himself up, as the Sonic boom created had knocked him to the floor. "So, Tails, what did you want to show me?"   
Dusting himself off, he walked over to the nearby wall and triumphantly pulled open a hidden cabinet. Then, without warning, he crawled inside and disappeared. "Lil' buddy? Where'dya go?" Sonic looked down the path Tails had disappeared on, and realized that there was another room on the other side of the wall.   
"C'mon through!"   
"Okay..." Sonic hesitantly squeezed through the tunnel, and dropped down on the other side, landing on his side. Looking up, he wasn't prepared for what he witnessed. He was in a large, white room, square in shape. Niches in the wall housed various machinery that, Sonic surmised, had been developed by Tails. "Wow."   
Tails smiled at Sonic, and gave him a thumbs up, as if asking what he thought. Sonic returned the thumbs up, still looking around. While Sonic continued to gape, Tails flew up to a higher part of the room, then came back down with several gadgets and doohickeys in his arms. "Time to get to work."   
--   
The night air was cool, and a light wind blew. The stars above shone down upon the forest floor, casting shadows everywhere. Rouge had fallen asleep, having lost interest in watching Knuckles try to harness the red Super Emerald's power as Sonic had back on the Floating Island. He grasped the Emerald tightly in his right hand, and held a ring in his left. His eyes closed, he concentrated on the Emerald. Finally, he opened his eyes to glare at the jewel. "Stupid jewel! Why don't you just light _yourself _on fire!?" The Emerald was only too happy to oblige. "OW!"   
His loud shout of pain awoke Rouge to a pleasantly amusing sight. Knuckles waved his glove around, whimpering, while simultaneously stomping on the smoldering leaves on the forest floor. The emerald's glowing was subsiding. "Smart. Very smart."   
Knuckles picked up the gem, scowled at it quickly, then stuck it back in the sack with the other one. "C'mon, we should continue moving. How far away are we from the nearest G.U.N. facility, anyways?"   
"I'd say a few miles. I recall seeing one when I flew to the Floating Island. Gratuitously escorted, of course."   
"Great! Let's keep moving, then." Without saying anything else, he continued along the path.   
"Knuckles! Why are you in such a hurry?"   
"I have my work cut out for me."   
"You're tired, Knuckles. You can't just keep pushing on, or you won't be able to do anything if you ever get there."   
"Just watch me."   
"Fine! Go on ahead, I'm going to go back to sleep. It's late, and I'm tired."   
"Fine!" He turned around, and continued down the path, clutching the bag of emeralds closely. Rouge rolled onto her side. The cool night air was beginning to get to her. She curled up, shivering. She closed her eyes, and began to drift off into slumber.   
*************   
_A/N: Yeah, it's short. Yeah, it's late. Yeah, I'm still busy in school. But rest assured. Yeah, I'm going to finish this fic one way or another. Reviews extremely welcome. I'm also fooling around in Adobe Photoshop, making a crude sprite comic adaptation that you'll probably never see. And yes, I changed the title._   
  
  



	8. Chapter 7

**_Secret of the Seven Gems_**   
_By RocketDarkiness_   
**_Chapter 7_**   
_A/N: And the story moves on, schoolwork be damned!_

*****************   
Rouge woke up cold, damp, and with a kink in her back. Her face was pressed into the ground, which appeared to have transformed into mud sometime during the night. Only one word could possibly describe how she felt at that moment: "Ugh." She pushed herself up, standing on the tips of her boots as she stretched, hearing her back crack as her body began to wake up. Wiping off some of the mud from her face, she set out in search of the nearest stream or river where she could freshen up.   
--   
Knuckles finally began to regret leaving Rouge once he reached the G.U.N. compound. Parting the large ferns in his way, he realized that it was, indeed, nigh-impossible to get in. "Man, I hate it when Rouge is right." He began to look over the veritable fortress, trying to find some weakness in its armor. Unfortunately, all he could see was the tall, concrete walls blocking his view from the inside. Hunter robots patrolled the perimeter and the top of the wall. 'Hm....should I go for subtlety or just charge on in? Well, I guess I should be stealthy until I see what's inside, at least."  
Knuckles began to rev up into a spin dash, then blasted off, past the front of the gate, and around the corner, onto the side of the structure. Coming out of the spin, he put his back to the wall, glancing first to the left, then to the right. He turned around, then began to climb up the outer wall slowly, being careful not to make too much noise each time his sharp knuckle entered the concrete. Hoisting himself up, he let out a pent-up exhalation. He dropped down, and looked over the other side to see what was being hidden.   
--  
"Alright, Sonic, here's what I've got for you." Tails held out a small box to Sonic, wrapped in brown paper and topped with a small sting tied around it in a crude bow.   
"Thanks. It's like Christmas, except not in December," Sonic said, half sarcastically. Tails laughed, knowing Sonic would never pass up even the slightest chance to crack a good-hearted joke. Sonic snapped the string with his thumb, and lifted the lid off of the package. Peering inside, he saw a set of jet black gloves and a small pile of metal plates. He lifted the gloves out first, turning them around. "Why're they so heavy?" he asked, slipping off his old gloves, and replacing them with his gift. He performed a few different actions, testing their comfort and maneuverability.   
"Sonic, you probably shouldn't do that!" Sonic froze, and looked at Tails. Tails walked over to his side, and pointed to the top of the gloves. "Look closely."  
Sonic squinted, and tilted his head to the side. "Don't see anything." Tails reached over and pressed lightly on the top of Sonic's hand. A small alcove popped up silently, almost impossible to see because of the blend of black fabric and machinery.   
"Now, if you want to use these, you simply need to do this," Tails said, extending his pointer and pinky finger out. Sonic followed suit, and a small object was fired with lightning speed from the glove. Striking the wall, it crackled and pulsed with electricity for a brief second before quieting down.  
"Wow."  
"Sonic, these darts are a special type of ammunition. They send enough of a shock to send int unconsciousness all but the hardiest of lifeforms, while still providing enough juice to fry the circuits of any robot that ends up in your path. Stealthy, quick, and efficient."  
"And these?" Sonic asked, hinting at his excitement to discover what the oblong metal plates were designed for.  
"Ah...these are particularly neat. Sit down for a second, will ya?" Sonic obliged, and Tails grasped Sonic's shoe in his hands and squeezed a few areas. To Sonic's immense surprise, the entire sole of his shoe came off, causing his foot to push through and put him slightly off balance.   
"Why do you know more about my shoes than I do?"  
"Good question." Tails took one of the plates out of the box, and stuck it into place. "This plate I designed in a hurry, as soon as we got back. It's a prototype imitation of Shadow's jet skates. Very useful when you don't need any loud footsteps. This other pair of plates have microscopic spikes, allowing you to stop on the ceiling once you get up there. I'm sure you'll find them quite useful."  
"I knew you could build a mean plane, but I never thought you'd enter the spy biz." Sonic stood up, testing both shoes. If this is what you've got for me, I can't wait to see what you've developed for Knuckles."  
"Funny you should ask that. Care to see?"  
--  
Knuckles silently berated himself as he looked over his shoulder. _Damn robots. How'd they know I was there? I'm lucky I escaped without any major injuries...just a few scrapes and bruises. And now what? I'm out in the jungle, alone. No companions. No idea where Rouge could be. No way to get my revenge...and you! _He glared at the emerald. _You didn't do anything! In fact, I've I've coaxed you to do is light yourself on fire! _He growled at it for no apparent reason.   
"Whatsa matter, Knux? Trouble with your new jewel?"  
Knuckles turned around, and was shocked to find Rouge and Sonic standing behind him. "How long have you two been there?"   
"Long enough to hear you growl at your emerald," Sonic replied, speaking for the first time. "C'mon, Tails has got some amazing stuff to show you. I'll Chaos Control us to save time."  
"Wait a minute, when'd you get black--"  
And then they were back in the Mystic Ruins, outside Tails' Workshop.  
"--gloves?" Knuckles finished.   
"C'mon inside, you'll find out." Sonic held the door open, and gestured them in. Rouge and Knuckles walked in, Rouge commenting on how well-kept it was for a kid's house. Sonic followed them inside, then spoke to the wall.  
"Tails, are you ready?"  
"Yeah, Sonic! Just a second!" Tails' voice came from seemingly nowhere. "Offer them something to eat or drink or something while you wait."  
"Um...ok...hey, you two. Want anything?" Sonic asked to fill time. Curiosity was beginning to get to him, as Tails had left subtle hints throughout the time he was there.   
"No thanks," they both responded unanimously. Rouge sat down uncomfortably on a nearby couch, while Knuckles simply decided to cross his legs and sit on the floor, still brooding. Each second not spent actively seeking those bastards that destroyed his home was a second lost forever. _Gone forever...just like my island. But everything seems so hopeless. Alone, I can't even comprehend the thought of walking into that place and surviving. Even with a few more people, we'd need a miracle to try it. What's the point...?  
_Knuckles snapped out of his turbulent thoughts when Tails announced he was ready to display his gadgets. "Here, Knuckles. Like Sonic, I've developed a new pair of gloves. Unlike Sonic's, they don't need to be black. So here you go." He handed them to the echidna, smiling. Knuckles slowly yet deliberately replaced his old gloves, and opened and closed his hands. "What do they do?"  
"Apply light pressure to the top of your gloves." Knuckles did so, but could not figure out what was different. Tails directed him outside, towards an old, dying tree. "Punch it."  
"Tails, I don't need new gloves to knock that old thing down. I could have done it before."  
"Just sock the tree."  
"Alright, if you say so." He drew back his fist, and drove it into the tree's trunk. On contact, the tree shattered. Not broke apart, but shattered like glass. Knuckles held his other hand up in front of his face to protect himself as the pieces of wood bounced harmlessly off him. After the hail of chips stopped, he glanced down at his new weapontry with a wide eyed expression.  
"The ends of the glove have a special device on them, which emits an ultrasonic frequency when it collides with anything. It's got enough power to blast apart anything I can think of. Just remember to turn it off, ok?" Knuckles nodded slowly.   
"Can we go now?" Rouge asked, annoyed.   
"After I give you your gift, yes," Tails replied.  
Rouge was caught off-guard. "You made _me _something?"   
"You're going to help us, right?"  
"Well...yes!" There and then Rouge made up her mind. She was sticking with them until the end.Tails handed her a small, white, wooden box. She opened the lid, and was shocked at what she found. A sleek white rectangle with numerous buttons and knobs on it lie on its side. "My...my Treasure Scope!"  
"Yep! I figured it would be useful. At least, now it will be. There's a wealth of gadgets in that thing. Check it out!" Tails stood next to her and began to point out all the new features. "See, this switch releases the optical frame, and the attachment piece so it can actually stick to your head. Also, I added a small voice transmitter, so this receiver will allow you to talk to us. On this side that's normally pressed against the side of your head is a speaker, so that communication is possible."  
"Tails, this is amazing--" Rouge began.  
"That's not it. We're barely scraping the surface of what I've added. See, the optical frame can also display information on the surrounding area, including whatever readings it makes. It can also be switched into a thermal mode, allowing you to easily distinguish between lifeforms in a dark area. On the bottom, there's a small data port where you can connect to a computer, and both upload and download information from the Scope. Finally, this button activates a small camera, allowing you to record everything seen through the scope." Rouge, Sonic, and Knuckles all stared at Tails, at a loss for words.   
"Oh yeah, and I gave it a new paint job."  
"Thanks, Tails." Rouge bent down slightly and gave him a kiss on his cheek quickly, before returing her attention to her new toy.   
"Sorta makes our pale in comparison, eh Knux?" Sonic nodded.   
"Well, time to get moving!" Tails shouted. "We've got a long road ahead!"  
"Hey, nothing's too long for the--"   
"--World's fastest hedgehog, we know!" Rouge and Knuckles finished Sonic's sentence, then glanced at each other, then shrugged.   
*****************   
_A/N: Wow, it's been a long time. Sorry, but school is still important, whether or not I want it to be. Meh. The fic continues, as you can see! Like the gadgets?  
  
RANDOM FACT: These files are labeled "Definitive Sonic" on my computer. Why? Because I didn't think up a name that did the fic justice. And come to think of it, I still haven't!_  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	9. Chapter 8

**_Secret of the Seven Gems  
_**_By RocketDarkness_  
_**Chapter 8  
**_   
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"Well, what's our first course of action, then?" Rouge asked. "We can't just run around and hope to succeed through dumb luck."  
Knuckles quickly joined the conversation. "Before you and Sonic found me, I had just left the G.U.N. compound you had mentioned. It's built like a fortress, but maybe with all of us, we can figure out a way inside. We have to."   
"You know, Knuckles, I can always use Chaos Control," Sonic scoffed.  
"Yes, I guess that could...work."  
"Makes me wonder why I even bothered to give you guys all that cool stuff when you can just Chaos Control, then stroll in through the front door," Tails pondered.   
"Don't worry, Tails, I still appreciate the effort," Rouge said, tapping her Treasure Scope proudly. She gave him a thumbs-up sign to emphasize her point. He grinned wearily in response.  
"At least SOMEONE appreciates me," he said, glaring playfully at Sonic.   
"Anyways," Sonic said, changing the conversation, "we should probably get going. We've got a long way to go, and I'm not wasting rings with another Chaos Control. So, you guys ready for another adventure?"  
"I've been on all the rest, and I'm not about to stop that tradition!" Tails responded.  
"Seeing as how it's my island we're doing this for, I think the answer is obvious."  
"G.U.N.'s been a loose cannon for too long. I've got to put a stop to their corruption."  
They each looked back and forth at each other, preparing themselves for what could be their most dangerous mission ever.  
--  
"Okay, the main compound should be somewhere around here..." Rouge said, glancing around at their surroundings. "The main path is hidden somewhere in all this underbrush. If we can find it, we've found our target."  
Knuckles glanced down at the mud. "I think I've been here before!" He got down on his knees, and looked at the mess of tracks they had made. "Yep. Right here is my footprint going away from here. This must have been after I left, which means we're extremely close." He stood back up.  
Sonic turned to Tails. "Hey, check out our location, but don't fly too far up. We don't want our visit to be announced prematurely."  
"Can do, Sonic." Tails flew up above the treetops, then began to comb the sky, looking for any signs of G.U.N.'s location. Sonic watched until he was out of sight, then sat down on a nearby log to wait. Rouge sat down next to him.  
"You two have been through a lot together, haven't you?"  
Sonic turned to look at her, slightly startled at first. "Yeah, we've been friends for a long time now, and gone through so much. I trust him with my life." He grinned, remembering their past exploits.  
"With your life?"  
"I have before, and I'm still here."  
"He seems like a great kid."  
"Yeah, the best." An awkward silence ensued.   
Tails returned a few minutes later, panting slightly. "I think I've found it. There's a patch of trees that don't quite look right from the air. Follow me!" He took off, back into the air.  
Sonic and Knuckles followed on the ground, while Rouge, flapping her wings, decided to fly alongside him. She rose up to his level, waving at him as she caught up. Tails sped up, eager to see whether his intuition was right. The airborne duo remained slightly ahead of them along the way. Tails pointed a slight ways ahead of them. "See, right there!"  
"It does look different," Rouge commented. She then reached to her head, and flipped down the Treasure Scope's eyepiece. "Aha! It's right there. I guess they added some sort of camouflage or cloaking mechanism recently, since I did see it when I flew over it a few days ago. Though doing that sure takes up a lot of power."   
"We should land, in case we're detected by their radar or something." Tails said. The fox and bat descended down in front of Sonic and Knuckles. "It's right ahead, you two. Now be careful." The group began to slow down to normal walking speed, keeping an eye out for any sign of robots. Knuckles walked over to the left slightly, pushing ferns out of the way.  
"Over here." Knuckles pointed at a concrete wall with dozens of little indentations in the concrete. "This is exactly where I climbed in the first time, which means the entrance is right over there." He pointed to the right. "Sonic, how many rings do you have?"   
"More than enough to get what we need, as long as we don't waste our time." Knuckles quickly climbed back up the wall, and peeked over.   
"C'mon, get up here. We might as well get as close as we can before starting the count." Rouge and Tails flew up, Sonic dangling from the grasp of Tails. They landed on the outermost wall.   
"Now, are you guys ready? Since you've all got a Chaos Emerald, you'll be left unaffected by the Chaos Control. Ready, set, CHAOS CONTROL! " As soon as Sonic finished his sentence, they jumped down into the main courtyard and dashed for the door.  
"Shoot, it's locked!" Rouge shouted. The large metal security door appeared impenetrable.   
"Don't worry, I came prepared!" Tails quickly made his way to the keypad and attached a small device. He pushed a few buttons, and the other three watched as the gadget ran through every combination until it found the correct one in a matter of seconds. Tails pulled it off, and dashed down the hallway. Sonic, Knuckles, and Rouge soon followed. "So, Knuckles, exactly what do you plan to do here?"   
Knuckles came to a screeching halt. "Um..."  
"You mean you dragged us down here and you don't even have a plan!?" Rouge shouted. Knuckles began to give a response off the top of his head, but he was interrupted from embarrassment by a blast of yellow energy that hit the area where Sonic had been moments before. A Hunter stood behind them, appearing larger and menacing in the small hallway. Sonic raised his fist toward it, and then extended his two fingers.   
"Tails, I love these gloves." The robot convulsed with the electricity before shutting down, all circuits fried.   
"How could it have been unaffected by the Chaos Control?" Rouge snapped her fingers, and pulled down the eyepiece once again. Scanning the hall way, she discovered that the surrounding area was now bathed in the power of a Chaos Emerald. "They've got another emerald here! Sonic, you might as well stop wasting your rings and disable the Chaos Control! It's not going to do anything useful." She reached up to push the scope back up, but she decided it might come in handy to detect any other secrets this place might have.   
With a wave of his hand, the Chaos Control faded away. "Now what? We should probably get out of here before more robots get a chance to arrive.   
"No way, Sonic!" Knuckles stood defiantly against the idea. He stood up straight. "If they have one of the emeralds, then they must know where the island is underwater. And if they know where the island is, then..."  
"...we can find the Master Emerald!" Rouge finished his sentence triumphantly. At that moment, a group of Hunter robots turned the corner and began to open fire. Sonic raised his fist again, but Knuckles intervened.   
"I've got a better idea!" Knuckles drew back his fist, then put all of his effort into punching the wall. It crumbled from both the force of the punch and the power of the device housed within the gloves. Another steel hallway waited on the other side. Rouge jumped through the hole, and glanced both directions. She motioned for them to follow, then took off to the right. "Rouge, do you know where you're going?"  
"I'm following the signal from the emerald. It's power output is higher the closer we are to it. Chances are, they'll store this precious power source near the mainframe computer, which is where we'll find our information."  
"Well, then, lead the way!" Knuckles said, gesturing towards the path in front of them. They increased their pace, hurtling through the synthetic hallways as a large blur of color.   
"You know, if I had ever tried this in one of Eggman's bases, you can bet I'd have activated an alarm by now. G.U.N.'s really off the mark, aren't they?"   
Rouge screeched to a stop, quite literally with the metal soles of her boots. "They must have silent alarms, since the security is all automated, and the scientists are probably alerted through their computers. Which means..." The area seemed uncannily quiet. She could just barely detect the steady hum of several computers. "We're close." Rouge looked around the room, flipping between several vision modes of the scope. She walked slowly towards the side of the room, and put her hand against the cool metal. She felt up and down, then pushed. Her hand went through the wall effortlessly. "Aha." She disappeared through the wall. On the other side, a dark, cool room greeted her. The yellow Chaos Emerald, sitting upon a makeshift pedestal, was attached to several tubes, and was apparently being used to power the entire place. Glowing computer screens emitted soft light out onto her face, and she looked down at them to see what their purpose was.   
"So you were right. This is the mainframe," Tails commented. "Do you think they have the information we need?"  
Rouge shrugged. "I'm not going to sit here and sort through it all, especially when they probably already know we're..." Her sentence tapered off as she noticed a small security camera for the first time. She pointed upwards to it, mouthing a silent swear. "Stealth was never my thing anyways," Sonic commented.   
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_A/N: Another chapter done before Winter Break ends. Hurray. I love feedback, preferrably as a review, but if you've already reviewed, please, by all means email me, or use AIM. rocketdarkness@yahoo.com_ _for email, rocketdarkness as my screename._ _I'd like to see how the readers like the gizmos I've given our heroes. _  



End file.
